They won 27 games and finished tied for second in a loaded Big Ten despite losing four of their last five games against the five ranked teams in their league. And while Tom Izzo has cultivated a program where expectations run high year-in and year-out, the Spartans managed to make it to the Sweet 16 in the 2013 NCAA tournament, which is far from disappointing for a team that entered the year ranked 14th.

The hype surrounding the Michigan State program will be a bit different heading into 2013-2014, however, as the Spartans caught a break and got both Adreian Payne and Gary Harris back for another season. Thatís why most preseason top 25s have the Spartans ranked somewhere in the top five, with some slotting them as high as No. 2.

You know this board is slow when you post a thread about a team that you know certain posters are a fan of to get some activity...even when there's really only two MSU fans that post here somewhat regularly. lol

I'd put them fourth or fifth. The guys can get better and they have a great starting lineup, but the core here has also proven that they can lose in the sweet 16 two straight years to teams that were supposedly pretty equal going into the game (Louisville was considered a slightly lesser team two years ago actually).

Hard to not think teams such as Kentucky, Louisville as well as Duke and Kansas have a higher ceiling. The regular season means nothing. When they do eventually meet an equal team in the tourny, they simply can't go through shooting slumps like they have the last two seasons....been the Izzo problem for years. They will always defend well and protect the rim....but can they avoid the 10 min no field goal slumps?....